Glory Days
by Girlmeetsbooks
Summary: 14-year-old Mizu has always known she is a true wolf. She has an adoptive human father, who does not know about her rocky past. Life is normal. Or so she thinks. But when you're an adopted wolf and best friends with wild animals, life is not normal. Especially if you're destined for Paradise. KibaxOC if you squint.


Glory Days

**A/N – Hey there! I'm here with a new Wolf's Rain fanfiction. As you can see it is called 'Glory Days'. My OC Mizu (English translation= water) will star in it, along with the original WR characters. I'm a lil' new here, so please don't be too harsh when you review. However I would like some tips and hints on how to write better, so feel free to write in the review box. Kudos to those who do! **

**Disclaimer: I do not own Wolf's Rain. All of its characters except for my character Mizu belong to BONES and Yoko Kanno.**

**Also, I do not own "Glory Days" by Bruce Springsteen. That would be pretty cool if I did, though...**

Chapter One: Paradise City

I ran down the steps, skateboard under my shoulder, and slid down the railing halfway down. "Mizu, how many times do I have to tell you about flying down the steps like that?" my father, Kin, scolded. "Sorry," I said, not sounding the least bit sorry. I always flew down the steps. And Kin also scolded me. It got annoying I have to admit.

"Hurry up, you'll be late for the bus," Kin announced. I wasn't listening: I was already skidding down the flight of stairs that went down to the driveway. I wasn't taking the bus. I had better things to do than go to school. In fact, I had some friends to meet instead of listening to my glum father.

Firstly, I'll tell you why I call my father 'Kin' instead of 'Dad' or 'Daddy', some parental name like that. Really, he's not my biological dad. My real parents are dead. He's just a temporary foster parent till I can live on my own, which will be in four years. I'm in my freshmen year in high school, but really, I don't enjoy school that much.

Who does to be honest with you?

Anyway, I was adopted when I was four. I'll tell you why I'm not his real daughter. He doesn't know this, but...I'm actually a _wolf. _Yeah, you heard me right. I'm a damn wolf! You, my reader, must be thinking that I'm insane or something. Many people have called me that, but it's not true. In my human form, I'm your regular-looking teenage girl.

But in my true form, I'm a white wolf with grey eyes. I've known this since I was little. My real parents are wolves. I have wolf friends, too. Kin doesn't know this; however.

I came to a hault near an alley. I could see Toboe and Tsume, two wolves who I think are adorable, sitting together against the alley wall, Toboe chatting away to the older grey wolf, and Tsume trying to ignore him altogether. Even though Toboe annoys the hell out of Tsume, I think they love each other. I need to introduce my friends to you.

Firstly, there's Hige and Blue, who are also best friends. Blue is the only female in the pack. Before I came along, that is. Then there's Kiba, the quiet ringleader, who I've grown the closest to. Honestly he's like a brother to me on many terms. We're both similar. Though I'm skeptic about Paradise, he still cares about me for who I am and not what I'm not.

Oh yeah. And there's that heavenly place called Paradise. From what the other wolves have said, it's supposed to be like another version of Heaven, like in the Bible. I don't know what it's like, but it sure does sound like a great place to be, from what Kiba has said before. And the weird thing is: only _wolves can find it. _

"Hey, Mizu," Toboe barked, waving at me. I smiled at him and sat next to Blue, who was sitting across from Hige. "Hey, Tob," I said, using my usual greeting for him. "What's up, pup?" Toboe was too excited to notice that I was tired. "Guess what?" he cheered, "Kiba says there's something weird going on in town! But in a good way this time."

I looked to Blue for help. She shrugged. "He hasn't told me anything," she said in that laid-back way of hers. "But ask Kiba. He ought to know." I looked around. "Speaking of which," I said steadily, "where _ is _Kiba?" Hige shrugged. "Don't ask me," he replied. "Last time I saw him, he was really irritable. Maybe he's a no-show."

Hige was right. Kiba is a moody sort of guy. He may seem a bit heartless, but on the inside, he's good and caring once you get to know him. Though he has a bad temper, his calm disposition helps cover it up. He's a wolf of few words, and a kid who tries to cover up his emotions as well. His insecurities are beyond me.

"Forget him," Tsume said flatly. "Who else here is tired?" I decided to ignore Tsume's lame-ass comment. I sniffed. "I think I smell him," I murmured. "Smell him?" Hige's laugh was annoyingly obnoxious. "Hasn't he taken a bath lately?" I reached over Blue's head and smacked him on the shoulder. "Not in that way, you idiot!" I snapped. "I meant I can tell he's nearby." Hige can be so immature sometimes.

"Hey," someone said calmly. I looked up to see Kiba walking in human form toward the alley. "Welcome back," I said sarcastically. Kiba smirked. "Nice to see you, too," he retorted. "Alright, no fighting, children," Tsume reprimanded. I chuckled and looked at Kiba. "So, what's up with the news, alpha?"

Kiba grew back to being serious. "Well," he began slowly, steadily, "I smelled something on the road today...it smelled almost like Lunar Flowers." Chills ran up and down my spine. "Lunar Flowers?" I whispered. I breathed in. "Wait a minute!" I cried. "I smelled it, too!" Kiba looked at me with narrowed eyes, almost like he didn't believe me. "What do you mean, you smelled it?"

I said, "I smelled it. It was...was this morning. I think that's why I didn't go to school today."  
>"Cutting school again?" Hige clucked his tongue disapprovingly. "Naughty, naughty. Like, haven't you gotten detentions for that before?"<p>

He was right. I was beginning to memorize what the ISS (In School Detention) and office looked like. Plus I had become quite familiar with our school's principle, too.

"Yeah, well." I waved him away freely. "Just 'cause I have a black record in school doesn't mean I'm a delinquent or something. Haven't you ever gotten a detention before?"

He shrugged. "Not that I can remember." I sighed and shook my head. "Kiba," I said as I turned to him. "What are we gonna do? If there's no Paradise, I don't know where else we'll go." Kiba looked bored. Or something else. Maybe he was just tired. Either way he didn't show much emotion towards me at all. "There is a Paradise," he said confidently. "I've known it since I was a pup."

"My father never told me there was a Paradise." I didn't bother to hide the scorn in my voice. If there was a Paradise, we would have found it by now, right...?

Right.

"Well, come with me." Kiba helped me up. "I need to show you something," he said softly. His eyes skimmed over the rest of the gang. "All of you. Come with me."

I sighed. There was no use in trying now. Kiba had his mind set to this retarded place. But it his Big Idea to go there.

If it was Paradise, it was Paradise.


End file.
